Andrea Vance's new book will need a new chapter. Willis and Luxon can't keep a story straight, from one interview to the next. Who's running this shambles?
And if anyone needs reminding …
Here's my commitment to you. When I become Prime Minister, I'll reverse Labour's tax grab, National will repeal each of these tax increases implemented by Labour.
Very simple B&W messaging, details are not important (aka noise). What people hear is: Labour = more tax, less money and National = less tax, more money.
The question reminds me of the answer given by the then President of the Collingwood Football Club in the AFL when the League demanded that every team had to have two jerseys (or guernseys in the local vernacular). One would be for home games and one for away matches. This did not go down very well with the Magpies who had been wearing their black and white vertically striped jersey since 1884.
The then President announced that they would go along with the rule by wearing black and white stripes for home games and white and black stripes for the away ones.
There was a later minor compromise made but unless you were a Collingwood follower you probably wouldn't have seen the difference in the two types.
Willis said National had been "consistently clear that [we are] the party that stands for tax reduction".
The difference between National and Labour "couldn't be starker", she told RNZ, with Labour "determined not to provide any permanent tax relief to New Zealanders, preferring a band-aid payment".
Agree, and Labour have regularly made the same distinction but in terms of more services and support for those on lower incomes i.e. what the taxation pays for.
What a moment it must have been, when James Lovelock realised this:
"Earth, in contrast, was a living system that worked to maintain the atmosphere in violent disequilibrium with the planet’s geology. This, Lovelock realised, was the signature of life that could be highly useful as we searched for other living planets.", having first discovered this:
"Lovelock was at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, when the first analyses of the Martian and Venusian atmospheres were received. He realised immediately that they were very different from Earth’s atmosphere, in that they were at equilibrium with the planet’s geology. Venus and Mars, he concluded, were dead planets."
Tim Flannery rated him!
“James Lovelock was an inspiration and a mentor, a truly great man the likes of whom we shall not see again. Today, science is compartmentalised, collaborative, regulated and peer-reviewed in ways that do not sit well with the maverick. And yet there is a crying need for such people, especially those able to take the holistic view, as risky and uncertain as that sometimes is.”
TBF I have no argument with you about a pivot to severely less energy dense life (sustainable).
I think I heard this 20 or years ago. The idea reminds me of the hydro dam/environment tension from back in the day. Nature took a back seat so we could keep biggering. Ironically, now we claim our renewable energy supply to be green.
I'm aware of that irony too, and think about it fair deal. We are fortunate that Aramoana smelter and other projects that were going to be powered by the Clyde dam didn't go ahead. But the idea that we can keep flooding rivers has run it's course thankfully. Which brings us neatly to the limits of nature. At some point we might realise that working with nature enables us to meet our needs and create sustainable human communities. Hopefully soon.
Mystical spirit thinking ends up in techno-nightmare.
"….he [Lovelock] would happily store the waste (appropriately contained) from his lifetime use of nuclear energy on his veranda." gsays
Then what?
NUCLEAR POWER IS THE ONLY GREEN SOLUTION
James Lovelock – civilisation is in imminent danger. Published in The Independent, 24 May 2004.
….By all means, let us use the small input from renewables sensibly, but only one immediately available source does not cause global warming and that is nuclear energy.
In December leaders from around the world will meet in Copenhagen to try to agree on cutting back greenhouse gas emissions for decades to come. The most effective step to implement that goal would be a massive shift away from fossil fuels to clean, renewable energy sources. If leaders can have confidence that such a transformation is possible, they might commit to an historic agreement. We think they can.
….. a 2009 Stanford University study ranked energy systems according to their impacts on global warming, pollution, water supply, land use, wildlife and other concerns. The very best options were wind, solar, geothermal, tidal and hydroelectric power—all of which are driven by wind, water or sunlight (referred to as WWS). Nuclear power, coal with carbon capture, and ethanol were all poorer options,….
A new seagrass restoration project is being trialed with the hope it can then create an effective way to plant more of it around Aotearoa and help fight climate change.
Seagrasses account for about 10% of the carbon our oceans store but only cover zero point two percent of the seafloor, it also absorbs carbon 27 times faster than forests on land.
Left to its own devices much of the farmland in Aotearoa would, over time, return to native forest. First the pioneer plants would appear – for example kānuka, manuka, karamū, māhoe. Able to deal with drier, hotter conditions in open areas, eventually they would provide the cover for the next round of trees to move in – maybe pūriri, rimu, rātā, tōtara. Brought by seeds dispersed by wind or bird, maybe from native bush nearby.
But this takes time. A lot of time.
Across three sites the AUT Living Laboratory project are investigating different ways of fast-forwarding this natural plant succession to get to the later, bigger trees earlier.
The phone documents also appeared to reveal Infowars’ long-hidden finances.
Bankston outlined several days in 2018 in which Infowars made over $800,000 per day. Jones did not dispute the veracity of the emails or the dollar figures, but claimed some of their higher-profit days came during the week of CPAC, the conservative conference.
The January 6th House committee is preparing to request the trove of Alex Jones’s text messages and emails revealed Wednesday in a defamation lawsuit filed by victims of the Sandy Hook massacre, Rolling Stone has learned.
On Wednesday, Sandy Hook victims’ attorney Mark Bankston told Jones that his attorney had mistakenly sent Bankston three years worth of the conspiracy theorist’s emails and text messages copied from his phone.
Now — a source familiar with the matter and another person briefed on it tell Rolling Stone — the January 6th committee is preparing to request that data from the plaintiff attorneys in order to aid its investigation of the insurrection. These internal deliberations among the committee, which is probing former President Donald Trump’s role in causing the deadly Jan. 6 Capitol riot, began within minutes of the lawyer’s revelation being heard on the trial’s livestream on Wednesday afternoon.
Alex Jones is an American conservative, alt-right, and far-right radio show host and prominent conspiracy theorist.
"In the years following the [Sandy Hook] incident, Mr Jones repeatedly claimed that the shooting was a ploy to push gun control measures and claimed without evidence that it had been staged by actors and the media."
Jones used the same tactics to deny evidence of massacres committed by Assad regime revealed by the White Helmets.
The same claims of fraud of staged rescues of using crisis actors to fake injuries the whole gamut of the fascist big lie tactic.
Good on the parents of the children killed at Sandy Hook for taking this modern Goebbels to court.
Unfortunately, there is as yet no legal mechanism where the victims of Assad genocide and war crimes can file charges in court against Alex Jones and the all the other liars and genocide enablers and war crime deniers to court.
However; To all you deniers and enablers of war crimes and genocide in Syria and Ukraine, take it from me, Alex Jones trial and conviction, is a fair warning to all of you, that a day of reckoning for you, and justice for all the victims of your lies will come eventually.
For the crime of preying on the gullible and spreading your fascist infection in Left forums;
….this series further looks at the methods and effectiveness of the red-brown and fascistic media ecosystem in infiltrating leftist spheres of influence. This will perhaps be the most controversial part of the series and the hardest to explain, which makes its message all the more important.
How Trolls and Conspiracy Theorists Spun the Syrian War
Digital defenders helped the Assad government cover up its crimes.
Among Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s most reliable allies are the armies of Twitter bots, trolls, and digital defenders who have been quick to spread confusion in the wake of his government’s atrocities. Russia has often been at the center of this disinformation campaign…..
……After the Syrian government used chemical weapons in northwest Syria in April 2017, pro-regime news sources accused the “Al Qaeda–affiliated White Helmets” of creating a false-flag attack. The theory was amplified by Russian media and spread online with the hashtag #SyriaHoax. American alt-right figures, who opposed President Donald Trump’s military response to the attack, ran with the fact-free version of events. Infowars called the White Helmets “an al-Qaeda affiliated group funded by George Soros and the British government.” That lie was shared on Twitter by Infowars founder Alex Jones and conspiracy theorist Mike Cernovich and retweeted thousands of times.
So children are going undiagnosed, then as a consequence miss out on support like reader/writers, extra time, use of computers and other medical and education assistance there is. Thank you Do Litlle so you allocated some money appeared on your platform BUT this govt has totally FAILED again. Go back to your union job (the one that you are suppose to support workers- those workers who you are currently screwing) you are just someone taking space no better than a cardboard cutout in this government and destroying the future of Kiwis. This govt is SO OUT of touch with reality- and I add so are many who feature here🤬
Our son has had a similar thing occur in QLD Australia. His cousin has had a lung operation delayed x4 and the date moved out and told a private NSW hospital, when there is room. More the pandemic than incompetence imo. It is easy to blame the minister, harder to deal with covid impacts.
Blame the minister this commitment was made well before anyone new the existence of COVID. So now we have to just throw a cohort of those currently at school into the rubbish bin ?? That covers new entrance to yr 13.
when depts bid for money during the budget process must they and the ministers/govt also have some understanding that what is being asked for can be delivered. To me like the COVID 75k testing capabilities no one asked the obvious. So in that case yes it IS the minister/a at fault. They MUST be able to deliver, and with this govt once the announcement has been made there appears no care to fulfil.
National is calling it 'undemocratic' – though haven't seen a commitment to roll it back, when they are next in government (TBH – I haven't gone looking….).
One does wonder how, given the enormous scope of Ngai Tahu investments in the Canterbury area, the representatives can possibly vote on anything if they observe the conflict of interest rules properly.
By the way. Did you even read the story you linked to? This statement was also quoted in the last line of that link.
the enormous scope of Ngai Tahu investments in the Canterbury area
Do you happen to know the extent of this investment and how it compares with other institutional investments across Canterbury?
Others have run this line specifically regarding dairy farming; they were incorrect, Chinese investment in Canterbury dairy farms dwarfs that of tangata whenua.
Paora Goldsmith got skewered at QT about this a couple of days ago (HT Robert Guyton). For example:
Hon KIRITAPU ALLAN: I'll get this House to cast our minds all the way back to the good old years of 2015, 2016, when the Rt Hon John Key was at the helm. You'll remember that it was that then National Government that stewarded through the Environment Canterbury (Transitional Governance Arrangements) Bill. That bill, if this House will recall, did one of two things. First, it ensured that there were democratic representatives elected to Environment Canterbury (ECan). Secondly, it ensured that Ngāi Tahu retained the right and the obligation to appoint two members to that entity. To quote, actually, a good friend of this House, the Hon Scott Simpson, "I think that probably one of the great hallmarks of this time"—
I'm not sure anyone predicted a 'race war', did they? Appointing people purely on the basis of an accident of birth would seem to a silly policy, rather than anything more sinister.
Certainly a message that dogmatic Woke Cultists urgently need to hear (but, of course, their inherent narcissism, self-righteous delusions of grandeur & love of indiscriminately wielding power over others renders them deaf to all critique)..
Critical Theory's crude, distorted, low-resolution view of the world guaranteed to engender massive new forms of social in-justice (& to further entrench already existing ones).
Luxon withdraws commitment to increase in health spending to match inflation.
Willis says no decision has been made on whether this will be done.
So did Luxon speak without knowledge of the processes for making these decisions?
Has anyone noted that with an aging population and the cost of pandemic management (medical impact of deferred treatments) would mean merely matching inflation costs would result in a decline in our health system (and a complete inability to deal with staff shortages and a growing waiting list).
As for National's missing in action, but still loud in the media, they are no better.
Paula for my benefit Training Incentive Allowance by not for women after me Bennett – she says she would have given no one the cost of living increase but noted those on benefits had lower income than those getting the money.
She also would not have given the real increase of benefit levels made 1 April 2022 or the power income supplement either …
UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The U.N. nuclear chief warned that Europe’s largest nuclear power plant in Ukraine “is completely out of control” and issued an urgent plea to Russia and Ukraine to quickly allow experts to visit the sprawling complex to stabilize the situation and avoid a nuclear accident.
Rafael Grossi, director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency, said in an interview Tuesday with The Associated Press that the situation is getting more perilous every day at the Zaporizhzhia plant in the southeastern city of Enerhodar, which Russian troops seized in early March, soon after their Feb. 24. invasion of Ukraine.
“Every principle of nuclear safety has been violated” at the plant, he said. “What is at stake is extremely serious and extremely grave and dangerous.”
“I’d be very surprised if Corbyn has actually spoken to Ukrainians or even knows any…."
Oleksandra Povoroznyk
What Ukrainians Think About Jeremy Corbyn's Ukraine Interview
Chris York, Byline Times, 3 August 2022
“A lot of people in the West are denying Ukraine any sort of agency by claiming we’re constantly being manipulated by NATO or saying it’s a US proxy war and the West is forcing us to fight. None of these people are actually paying attention to what we’re actually saying. It’s sad and annoying.”….
“If you’re willing to strike a peace deal with Russia now at the cost of Ukraine’s territorial integrity, you should think about what kind of security system you’ll end up with: a system that rewards colonial conquest, genocide and blackmailing of the rest of the world with famine and nuclear war,”….
….“We didn’t attack anyone – we are defending our homes, land and sovereignty,” Natalia Haidai, a Russian-speaking Ukrainian from Bucha, told Byline Times. “[Corbyn’s] argument is that Ukrainians should surrender or be unable to defend themselves and be literally wiped out. I thought he was for solidarity for oppressed people?
Jeremy Corbyn in his statement on Ukraine, repeatedly refers to Ukraine as, "the Ukraine" as if Ukraine was a region, not a country.
(As in, 'in the Waikato'. As opposed to 'in New Zealand'. For instance if someone told you a man was found, 'in the Waikato', instead of, 'in Waikato', you could be excused for thinking that they were found in the river, (not the region.)
Whether he did it consciously, or unconsciously, Ukrainians found Corbyn's referring to their country as a region offensive and insulting.
Kathryn Graber explains why.
It’s ‘Ukraine,’ not ‘the Ukraine’ – here’s why
The Conversation: March 10, 2022 2.18am NZDT
For most of the 20th century, English speakers referred to “the Ukraine,” following Soviet practice. That’s not the case now. Ukraine’s official name in English does not include “the,” and for good reason.
Ambassadors, commentators and historians have tried to explain the change, but not everyone has gotten the message.
So let me try. I’m a linguistic anthropologist and an expert on language politics in Russia. I’m also bilingual in Russian and English, so I understand the subtleties of the distinction.
What is at stake? Nothing less than the political sovereignty of Ukraine…..
…..It might seem innocent, but it’s not.
…..To a Ukrainian worried about the nation-state’s territorial integrity, that little word “the” might suggest that the speaker does not much care whether Ukraine is an independent state. Like it or not, and intentionally or not, the language a person uses reflects their political positions, including their position on Ukraine’s territorial sovereignty.
…..So, does Putin say na Ukraine – “in the Ukraine” [like Corbyn]– or v Ukraine (“in Ukraine”)? [like everyone else]….
…..make no mistake: Putin is arguing that Ukraine’s sovereignty is a historical fiction, and he is underscoring his point by referring to events happening “na,” not “v,” Ukraine. English speakers don’t have to follow him by saying “the.”
I’ve explained that the policy requires you to supply evidence for claims. If you don’t want to work within the kaupapa of the site, I will just ban you. Your choice.
On February 14, 2023 we announced our Rebuttal Update Project. This included an ask for feedback about the added "At a glance" section in the updated basic rebuttal versions. This weekly blog post series highlights this new section of one of the updated basic rebuttal versions and serves as a ...
TL;DR: In today’s ‘six-stack’ of substacks at 6.06pm on Tuesday, March 19:Kāinga Ora’s dry rot The Spinoff DailyBill McKibben on ‘Climate Superfunds’ making Big Oil pay for climate damage The Crucial YearsPreston Mui on returning to 1980s-style productivity growth NoahpinionAndy Boenau on NIMBYs needing unusual bedfellows Urbanism SpeakeasyNed Resnikoff's case ...
Negative yesterday, negative today. Negative all year, according to one departing reader telling me I’ve grown strident and predictable. Fair enough. If it’s any help, every time I go to write about a certain topic that begins with C and ends with arrrrs, I do brace myself and ask: Again? Are ...
Bryce Edwards writes – It’s been a tumultuous time in politics in recent months, as the new National-led Government has driven through its “First 100 Day programme”. During this period there’s been a handful of opinion polls, which overall just show a minimal amount of flux in public support ...
Inspirational: The Family of Man is a glorious hymn to human equality, but, more than that, it is a clarion call to human freedom. Because equality, unleavened by liberty, is a broken piano, an unstrung harp; upon which the songs of fraternity will never be played.“Somebody must have been telling lies about ...
Tax Lawyer Barbara Edmonds vs Emperor Justinian I- Nolo Contendere: False historical explanations of pivotal events are very far from being inconsequential.WHEN BARBARA EDMONDS made reference to the Roman Empire, my ears pricked up. It is, lamentably, very rare to hear a politician admit to any kind of familiarity ...
It’s been a tumultuous time in politics in recent months, as the new National-led Government has driven through its “First 100 Day programme”. During this period there’s been a handful of opinion polls, which overall just show a minimal amount of flux in public support for the various parties in ...
Buzz from the Beehive Housing Minister Chris Bishop delivered news – packed with the ingredients to enflame political passions – worthy of supplanting Winston Peters in headline writers’ priorities. He popped up at the post-Cabinet press conference to promise a crackdown on unruly and antisocial state housing tenants. His ...
Ele Ludemann writes – The Reserve Bank is advertising for a Diversity, Equity and Inclusion advisor. The Bank has one mandate – to keep inflation between one and three percent. It has failed in that and is only slowly getting inflation back down to the upper limit. Will it ...
Last week former National Party leader Simon Bridges was appointed by the Government as the new chair of the New Zealand Transport Agency Waka Kotahi (NZTA). You can read about the appointment in Thomas Coughlan’s article, Simon Bridges to become chair of NZ Transport Agency Waka KotahiThe fact that a ...
Bryce Edwards writes – Last week former National Party leader Simon Bridges was appointed by the Government as the new chair of the New Zealand Transport Agency Waka Kotahi (NZTA). You can read about the appointment in Thomas Coughlan’s article, Simon Bridges to become chair of NZ Transport Agency ...
TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read: Gavin Jacobson talks to Thomas Piketty 10 years on from Capital in the 21st CenturyThe SalvoLocal scoop: Green MP’s business being investigated over migrant exploitation claims StuffSteve KilgallonLocal deep-dive: The commercial contractors making money from School ...
It’s a home - but Kāinga Ora tenants accused of “abusing the privilege” may lose it. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The Government announced a crackdown on Kāinga Ora tenants who were unruly and/or behind on their rent, with Housing Minister Chris Bishop saying a place in a state ...
This is a guest post by Connor Sharp of Surface Light Rail Light rail in Auckland: A way forward sooner than you think With the coup de grâce of Auckland Light Rail (ALR) earlier this year, and the shift of the government’s priorities to roads, roads, and more roads, it ...
Note: As a paid-up Webworm member, I’ve recorded this Webworm as a mini-podcast for you as well. Some of you said you liked this option - so I aim to provide it when I get a chance to record! Read more ...
TL;DR: In my ‘six-stack’ of substacks at 6.06pm on Monday, March 18:IKEA is accused of planting big forests in New Zealand to green-wash; REDD-MonitorA City for People takes a well-deserved victory lap over Wellington’s pro-YIMBY District Plan votes; A City for PeopleSteven Anastasiou takes a close look at the sticky ...
Buzz from the Beehive Here’s hoping for a lively post-cabinet press conference when the PM and – perhaps – some of his ministers tell us what was discussed at their meeting today. Until then, Point of Order has precious little Beehive news to report after its latest monitoring of the ...
David Farrar writes – We now have almost all 2023 data in, which has allowed me to update my annual table of how labour went against its promises. This is basically their final report card. The promiseThe result Build 100,000 affordable homes over 10 ...
I’m a bit worried that I’ve started a previous newsletter with the words “just when you think they couldn’t get any worse…” Seems lately that I could begin pretty much every issue with that opening. Such is the nature of our coalition government that they seem to be outdoing each ...
Geoffrey Miller writes – Timing is everything. And from China’s perspective, this week’s visit by its foreign minister to New Zealand could be coming at just the right moment. The visit by Wang Yi to Wellington will be his first since 2017. Anniversaries are important to Beijing. ...
Depictions of Islam in Western popular culture have rarely been positive, even before 9/11. Five years on from the mosque shootings, this is one of the cultural headwinds that the Muslim community has to battle against. Whatever messages of tolerance and inclusion are offered in daylight, much of our culture ...
Last week Transport Minster Simeon Brown and Mayor Wayne Brown opened the new Auckland Rail Operations Centre. The new train control centre will see teams from KiwiRail, Auckland Transport and Auckland One Rail working more closely together to improve train services across the city. The Auckland Rail Operations Centre in ...
Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: Retiring former Labour Finance Minister Grant Robertson said in an exit interview with Q+A yesterday the Government can and should sustain more debt to invest in infrastructure for future generations. Elsewhere in the news in Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy at 6:36am: Read more ...
Timing is everything. And from China’s perspective, this week’s visit by its foreign minister to New Zealand could be coming at just the right moment. The visit by Wang Yi to Wellington will be his first since 2017. Anniversaries are important to Beijing. It is more than just a happy ...
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New Zealand First Leader Winston Peters’s state-of-the-nation speech on Sunday was really a state-of-Winston-First speech. He barely mentioned any of the Government’s key policies and could not even wholly endorse its signature income tax cuts. Instead, he rehearsed all of his complaints about the Ardern Government, including an extraordinary claim ...
A listing of 35 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, March 10, 2024 thru Sat, March 16, 2024. Story of the week This week we'll give you a little glimpse into how we collect links to share and ...
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See if you can spot the difference. An Iranian born female MP from a progressive party is accused of serial shoplifting. Her name is leaked to the media, which goes into a pack frenzy even before the Police launch an … Continue reading → ...
Ele Ludemann writes – The government is omitting general Treaty references from legislation : The growth of Treaty of Waitangi clauses in legislation caused so much worry that a special oversight group was set up by the last Government in a bid to get greater coherence in the public service on Treaty ...
What was that judge thinking?Peter Williams writes – That Golriz Ghahraman and District Court Judge Maria Pecotic were once lawyer colleagues is incontrovertible. There is published evidence that they took at least one case to the Court of Appeal together. There was a report on ...
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Something you might not know about me is that I’m quite a stubborn person. No, really. I don’t much care for criticism I think’s unfair or that I disagree with. Few of us do I suppose.Back when I was a drinker I’d sometimes respond defensively, even angrily. There are things ...
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It was not so much the Labour Party but really the Chris Hipkins party yesterday at Labour’s caucus retreat in Martinborough. The former Prime Minister was more or less consistent on wealth tax, which he was at best equivocal about, and social insurance, which he was not willing to revisit. ...
Buzz from the BeehiveThe text reproduced above appears on a page which records all the media statements and speeches posted on the government’s official website by Melissa Lee as Minister of Media and Communications and/or by Jenny Marcroft, her Parliamentary Under-secretary. It can be quickly analysed ...
For forty years, Robert Muldoon has been a dirty word in our politics. His style of government was so repulsive and authoritarian that the backlash to it helped set and entrench our constitutional norms. His pig-headedness over forcing through Think Big eventually gave us the RMA, with its participation and ...
Bryce Edwards writes – Is the new government reducing tax on rental properties to benefit landlords or to cut the cost of rents? That’s the big question this week, after Associate Finance Minister David Seymour announced on Sunday that the Government would be reversing the Labour Government’s removal ...
Saudi Arabia is rarely far from the international spotlight. The war in Gaza has brought new scrutiny to Saudi plans to normalise relations with Israel, while the fifth anniversary of the controversial killing of Jamal Khashoggi was marked shortly before the war began on October 7. And as the home ...
Questions need to be asked on both sides of the worldPeter Williams writes – The NRL Judiciary hands down an eight week suspension to Sydney Roosters forward Spencer Leniu , an Auckland-born Samoan, after he calls Ezra Mam, Sydney-orn but of Aboriginal and Torres Strait ...
Ele Ludemann writes – Contrary to what many headlines and news stories are saying, residential landlords are not getting a tax break. The government is simply restoring to them the tax deductibility of interest they had until the previous government removed it. There is no logical reason ...
I can't remember when it was goodMoments of happiness in bloomMaybe I just misunderstoodAll of the love we left behindWatching our flashbacks intertwineMemories I will never findIn spite of whatever you becomeForget that reckless thing turned onI think our lives have just begunI think our lives have just begunDoes anyone ...
Michael Bassett writes – At first reading, a front-page story in the New Zealand Herald on 13 March was bizarre. A group of severely intellectually limited teenagers, with little understanding of the law, have been pleading to the Justice Select Committee not to pass a bill dealing with ram ...
How much political capital is Christopher Luxon willing to burn through in order to deliver his $2.9 billion gift to landlords? Evidently, Luxon is: (a) unable to cost the policy accurately. As Anna Burns-Francis pointed out to him on Breakfast TV, the original ”rock solid” $2.1 billion cost he was ...
TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read:Jonathon Porritt calling bullshit in his own blog post on mainstream climate science as ‘The New Denialism’.Local scoop:The Wellington City Council’s list of proposed changes to the IHP recommendations to be debated later today was leaked this ...
TL;DR:Prime Minister Christopher Luxon said yesterday tenants should be grateful for the reinstatement of interest deductibility because landlords would pass on their lower tax costs in the form of lower rents. That would be true if landlords were regulated monopolies such as Transpower or Auckland Airport1, but they’re not, ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Tom Toro Tom Toro is a cartoonist and author. He has published over 200 cartoons in The New Yorker since 2010. His cartoons appear in Playboy, the Paris Review, the New York Times, American Bystander, and elsewhere. Related: What 10 EV lovers ...
The business section of the NZ Herald is full of opinion. Among the more opinionated of all is the ex-Minister of Transport, ex-Minister of Railways, ex MP for Auckland Central (1975-93, Labour), Wellington Central (1996-99, ACT, then list-2005), ex-leader of the ACT Party, uncle to actor Antonia, the veritable granddaddy ...
Hi,Just quickly — I’m blown away by the stories you’ve shared with me over the last week since I put out the ‘Gary’ podcast, where I told you about the time my friend’s flatmate killed the neighbour.And you keep telling me stories — in the comments section, and in my ...
The first season of Rings of Power was not awful. It was thoroughly underwhelming, yes, and left a lingering sense of disappointment, but it was more expensive mediocrity than catastrophe. I wrote at length about the series as it came out (see the Review section of the blog, and go ...
Buzz from the Beehive Workplace Relations and Safety Minister Brooke van Velden told Auckland Business Chamber members they were the first audience to hear her priorities as a minister in a government committed to cutting red tape and regulations. She brandished her liberalising credentials, saying Flexible labour markets are the ...
Chris Trotter writes – TO UNDERSTAND WHY NEWSHUB FAILED, it is necessary to understand how TVNZ changed. Up until 1989, the state broadcaster had been funded by a broadcasting licence fee, collected from every citizen in possession of a television set, supplemented by a relatively modest (compared ...
Bob Edlin writes – The Māori Party has been busy issuing a mix of warnings and threats as its expresses its opposition to interest deductibility for landlords and the plans of seabed miners. It remains to be seen whether they follow the example of indigenous litigants in Australia, ...
The Government has accepted Labour’s change to the Road User Charge (RUC) discount for hybrid vehicles, meaning there will still be some incentive for people to buy greener vehicles. ...
Kicking the most vulnerable people out of state housing and pushing them towards homelessness will result in a proliferation of poverty and trauma across our most vulnerable communities. ...
Te Pāti Māori co-leader and MP for Waiariki, Rawiri Waititi has penned a letter asking MPs to support his members bill to remove GST from all food. The bill is expected to go through its first reading in parliament this Wednesday. “I’m calling on all political parties to support my ...
This year is about getting real with Kiwis and discussing the tough issues, as the National Government exacerbates inequality and divides New Zealand, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said ...
The Government adding Significant Natural Areas (SNAs) to its already roaring environmental policy bonfire is an assault on the future of wildlife that makes Aotearoa unique. ...
After 12 years of fighting to protect our moana we are finding ourselves back at square one and back at court. Today, the Environmental Protection Agency is sitting in Hawera to reconsider an application from Trans-Tasman Resources to dig up 50 million tonnes of the seabed in South Taranaki. This ...
Minister Shane Jones’ decision to step away from a seabed mining project is evidence of the murky waters surrounding the Government’s fast-track legislation. ...
The growth of Treaty of Waitangi clauses in legislation caused so much worry that a special oversight group was set up by the last government in a bid to get greater coherence in the publicservice on Treaty matters. When ministers first considered the need for tighter oversight in 2021, there ...
The growth of Treaty of Waitangi clauses in legislation caused so much worry that a special oversight group was set up by the last government in a bid to get greater coherence in the publicservice on Treaty matters. When ministers first considered the need for tighter oversight in 2021, there ...
The Coalition Government’s miscalculation saga continues as it has forgotten an eyewatering $90 million gap in its interest deductibility cost figures, say Labour Finance spokesperson Barbara Edmonds and Revenue Spokesperson Deborah Russell. ...
He Pou a Rangi Climate Change Commission has today released advice that says if the Government doesn’t act now New Zealand is at risk of not meeting its climate goals. ...
The Coalition Government has today confirmed it is abandoning first home buyers who are struggling to get ahead, says Labour Finance spokesperson Barbara Edmonds. ...
The New Zealand public voted for a change in direction at the 2023 general election and that is exactly what this coalition government has been delivering in its first 100 days. There was an immediate focus on the economy, easing the cost of living, cracking down on law and order ...
The Government has left the health system as an afterthought, announcing half-baked targets at the last minute of their 100-day plan, says Labour Health spokesperson Ayesha Verrall. ...
Kiwis are still waiting for their promised cost of living support after 100 days of a National Government that is taking us backwards, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said today. ...
The National Government has spent its first 100 days stopping, cutting and reversing. They have scrapped stuff for stuff for the sake of it, without putting up any solutions of their own – and it’s hardworking New Zealanders who will pay for it. ...
100 days of National taking NZ backwardsThe National Government has spent its first 100 days stopping, cutting and reversing. They have scrapped stuff for stuff for the sake of it, without putting up any solutions of their own – and it’s hardworking New Zealanders who will pay for it. ...
The Government must commit to funding free and healthy school lunches, as thousands of people sign the petition to keep them, education spokesperson Jan Tinetti says. ...
If the Government was serious about moving families into public housing, they would build more houses so there is actually somewhere for people to go. ...
The free and healthy school lunches programme feeds our kids, helps them to learn, and saves families money – but it is at risk under this Government, education spokesperson Jan Tinetti said. ...
The Government’s proposed changes to Firearms Prohibition Orders (FPO) add almost nothing new and are merely an attempt to distract from its plans to loosen gun laws, police spokesperson Ginny Andersen and justice spokesperson Dr Duncan Webb said. ...
The great Victorian era English politician Lord Macauley stood in the British House of Parliament and said, "The gallery in which the reporters sit has become a fourth estate of the realm".He understood and outlined even way back then, the significant role and influence media have in a democracy. ...
"The Government is moving quickly to realise an additional $46 million in tariff savings in the EU market this season for Kiwi exporters,” Minister for Trade and Agriculture, Todd McClay says. Parliament is set, this week, to complete the final legislative processes required to bring the New Zealand – European ...
New Zealand’s social workers are qualified, experienced, and more representative of the communities they serve, Social Development and Employment Minister Louise Upston says. “I want to acknowledge and applaud New Zealand’s social workers for the hard work they do, providing invaluable support for our most vulnerable. “To coincide with World ...
Cabinet has agreed to a reduced road user charge (RUC) rate for plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs), Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. Owners of PHEVs will be eligible for a reduced rate of $38 per 1,000km once all light electric vehicles (EVs) move into the RUC system from 1 April. ...
Minister of Agriculture and Trade, Todd McClay, says that today’s opening of Riverland Foods manufacturing plant in Christchurch is a great example of how trade access to overseas markets creates jobs in New Zealand. Speaking at the official opening of this state-of-the-art pet food factory the Minister noted that exports ...
Minister of Foreign Affairs Winston Peters met with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Wellington today. “It was a pleasure to host Foreign Minister Wang Yi during his first official visit to New Zealand since 2017. Our discussions were wide-ranging and enabled engagement on many facets of New Zealand’s relationship with China, including trade, ...
Kāinga Ora – Homes & Communities has been instructed to end the Sustaining Tenancies Framework and take stronger measures against persistent antisocial behaviour by tenants, says Housing Minister Chris Bishop. “Earlier today Finance Minister Nicola Willis and I sent an interim Letter of Expectations to the Board of Kāinga Ora. ...
Tēna koutou katoa. Greetings everyone. Thank you to the Auckland Chamber of Commerce and the Honourable Simon Bridges for hosting this address today. I acknowledge the business leaders in this room, the leaders and governors, the employers, the entrepreneurs, the investors, and the wealth creators. The coalition Government shares your ...
Minister Winston Peters completed the final leg of his visit to South and South East Asia in Singapore today, where he focused on enhancing one of New Zealand’s indispensable strategic partnerships. “Singapore is our most important defence partner in South East Asia, our fourth-largest trading partner and a ...
Minister of Internal Affairs and Workplace Relations and Safety, Hon. Brooke van Velden, will travel to the Republic of Korea to represent New Zealand at the Third Summit for Democracy on 18 March. The summit, hosted by the Republic of Korea, was first convened by the United States in 2021, ...
ICNZ Speech 7 March 2024, Auckland Acknowledgements and opening Mōrena, ngā mihi nui. Ko Andrew Bayly aho, Nor Whanganui aho. Good morning, it’s a privilege to be here to open the ICNZ annual conference, thank you to Mark for the Mihi Whakatau My thanks to Tim Grafton for inviting me ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Lead Coordination Minister Judith Collins have expressed their deepest sympathy on the five-year anniversary of the Christchurch terror attacks. “March 15, 2019, was a day when families, communities and the country came together both in sorrow and solidarity,” Mr Luxon says. “Today we pay our respects to the 51 shuhada ...
Speech for Financial Advice NZ Conference 5 March 2024 Acknowledgements and opening Morena, Nga Mihi Nui. Ko Andrew Bayly aho, Nor Whanganui aho. Thanks Nate for your Mihi Whakatau Good morning. It’s a pleasure to formally open your conference this morning. What a lovely day in Wellington, What a great ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters held discussions in Jakarta today about the future of relations between New Zealand and South East Asia’s most populous country. “We are in Jakarta so early in our new government’s term to reflect the huge importance we place on our relationship with Indonesia and South ...
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Winston Peters has announced that the Foreign Minister of China, Wang Yi, will visit New Zealand next week. “We look forward to re-engaging with Foreign Minister Wang Yi and discussing the full breadth of the bilateral relationship, which is one of New Zealand’s ...
Transport Minister Simeon Brown has today opened the new Auckland Rail Operations Centre, which will bring together KiwiRail, Auckland Transport, and Auckland One Rail to improve service reliability for Aucklanders. “The recent train disruptions in Auckland have highlighted how important it is KiwiRail and Auckland’s rail agencies work together to ...
The Government is proud to support the 10th edition of Crankworx Rotorua as the Crankworx World Tour returns to Rotorua from 16-24 March 2024, says Minister for Economic Development Melissa Lee. “Over the past 10 years as Crankworx Rotorua has grown, so too have the economic and social benefits that ...
Legislation implementing coalition Government tax commitments and addressing long-standing tax anomalies will be progressed in Parliament next week, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. The legislation is contained in an Amendment Paper to the Taxation (Annual Rates for 2023–24, Multinational Tax, and Remedial Matters) Bill issued today. “The Amendment Paper represents ...
Associate Environment Minister Andrew Hoggard has today announced that the Government has agreed to suspend the requirement for councils to comply with the Significant Natural Areas (SNA) provisions of the National Policy Statement for Indigenous Biodiversity for three years, while it replaces the Resource Management Act (RMA).“As it stands, SNAs ...
Agriculture Minister Todd McClay has classified the drought conditions in the Marlborough, Tasman, and Nelson districts as a medium-scale adverse event, acknowledging the challenging conditions facing farmers and growers in the district. “Parts of Marlborough, Tasman, and Nelson districts are in the grip of an intense dry spell. I know ...
The Government is helping farmers eradicate the significant impact of facial eczema (FE) in pastoral animals, Agriculture Minister Todd McClay announced. “A $20 million partnership jointly funded by Beef + Lamb NZ, the Government, and the primary sector will save farmers an estimated NZD$332 million per year, and aims to ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has completed a successful visit to India, saying it was an important step in taking the relationship between the two countries to the next level. “We have laid a strong foundation for the Coalition Government’s priority of enhancing New Zealand-India relations to generate significant future benefit for both countries,” says Mr Peters, ...
Cabinet has agreed to provide $7 million to ensure the 2024 ski season can go ahead on the Whakapapa ski field in the central North Island but has told the operator Ruapehu Alpine Lifts it is the last financial support it will receive from taxpayers. Cabinet also agreed to provide ...
Health Minister Dr Shane Reti says the launch of a new mobile breast screening unit in Counties Manukau reinforces the coalition Government’s commitment to drive better cancer services for all New Zealanders. Speaking at the launch of the new mobile clinic, Dr Reti says it’s a great example of taking ...
Health Minister Dr Shane Reti says the launch of a new mobile breast screening unit in Counties Manukau reinforces the coalition Government’s commitment to drive better cancer services for all New Zealanders. Speaking at the launch of the new mobile clinic, Dr Reti says it’s a great example of taking ...
Unlocking economic growth and land for housing are critical elements of the Government’s plan for our transport network, and planned upgrades to State Highway 29 (SH29) near Tauriko will deliver strongly on those priorities, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “The SH29 upgrades near Tauriko will improve safety at the intersections ...
Unlocking economic growth and land for housing are critical elements of the Government’s plan for our transport network, and planned upgrades to State Highway 29 (SH29) near Tauriko will deliver strongly on those priorities, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “The SH29 upgrades near Tauriko will improve safety at the intersections ...
Lower fruit and vegetable prices are welcome news for New Zealanders who have been doing it tough at the supermarket, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. Stats NZ reported today the price of fruit and vegetables has dropped 9.3 percent in the 12 months to February 2024. “Lower fruit and vege ...
Tēnā koutou katoa and greetings to you all. Chair, I am honoured to address the sixty-eighth session of the Commission on the Status of Women. I acknowledge the many crises impacting the rights of women and girls. Heightened global tensions, war, climate related and humanitarian disasters, and price inflation all ...
Tēnā koutou katoa and greetings to you all. Chair, I am honoured to address the 68th session of the Commission on the Status of Women. I acknowledge the many crises impacting the rights of women and girls. Heightened global tensions, war, climate related and humanitarian disasters, and price inflation all ...
The coalition Government is supporting farmers to enhance land management practices by investing $3.3 million in locally led catchment groups, Agriculture Minister Todd McClay announced. “Farmers and growers deliver significant prosperity for New Zealand and it’s vital their ongoing efforts to improve land management practices and water quality are supported,” ...
Good evening everyone and thank you for that lovely introduction. Thank you also to the Honourable Simon Bridges for the invitation to address your members. Since being sworn in, this coalition Government has hit the ground running with our 100-day plan, delivering the changes that New Zealanders expect of us. ...
Recommendations from the Climate Change Commission for New Zealand on the Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) auction and unit limit settings for the next five years have been tabled in Parliament, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says. “The Commission provides advice on the ETS annually. This is the third time the ...
The coalition Government is beginning its fight to lower building costs and reduce red tape by exempting minor building work from paying the building levy, says Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk. “Currently, any building project worth $20,444 including GST or more is subject to the building levy which is ...
Proposed changes to tax legislation to prevent the over-taxation of low-earning trusts are welcome, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. The changes have been recommended by Parliament’s Finance and Expenditure Committee following consideration of submissions on the Taxation (Annual Rates for 2023–24, Multinational Tax, and Remedial Matters) Bill. “One of the ...
Assalaamu alaikum. السَّلَام عليكم In light of the holy month of Ramadan, I want to extend my warmest wishes to our Muslim community in New Zealand. Ramadan is a time for spiritual reflection, renewed devotion, perseverance, generosity, and forgiveness. It’s a time to strengthen our bonds and appreciate the diversity ...
Former Transport Minister and CEO of the Auckland Business Chamber Hon Simon Bridges has been appointed as the new Board Chair of the New Zealand Transport Agency (NZTA) for a three-year term, Transport Minister Simeon Brown announced today. “Simon brings extensive experience and knowledge in transport policy and governance to the role. He will ...
Good morning all, it is a pleasure to be here as Minister of Science, Innovation and Technology. It is fantastic to see how connected and collaborative the life science and biotechnology industry is here in New Zealand. I would like to thank BioTechNZ and NZTech for the invitation to address ...
Regional Development Minister Shane Jones says he is looking forward to the day when three key water projects in Northland are up and running, unlocking the full potential of land in the region. Mr Jones attended a community event at the site of the Otawere reservoir near Kerikeri on Friday. ...
Associate Finance Minister David Seymour has today announced that the Government has agreed to restore deductibility for mortgage interest on residential investment properties. “Help is on the way for landlords and renters alike. The Government’s restoration of interest deductibility will ease pressure on rents and simplify the tax code,” says ...
Sport and Recreation Minister Chris Bishop will travel to Switzerland today to attend an Executive Committee meeting and Symposium of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA). Mr Bishop will then travel on to London where he will attend a series of meetings in his capacity as Infrastructure Minister. “New Zealanders believe ...
Pacific Media Watch Earthwise hosts Lois and Martin Griffiths. Earthwise presenters Lois and Martin Griffiths on Plains FM 96.9 community radio talk to Dr David Robie, a New Zealand author, independent journalist and media educator with a passion for the Asia-Pacific region. David talks about the struggle to raise awareness ...
Pacific Media Watch Ismail al-Ghoul, an Al Jazeera Arabic correspondent who was held for 12 hours at Gaza’s al-Shifa hospital, says Israeli forces rounded up Palestinian journalists at the facility and made them kneel on the ground for hours, while naked and blindfolded. “The occupation forces handcuffed and blindfolded us ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Tony Wood, Program Director, Energy, Grattan Institute chinasong, Shutterstock Electricity customers in four Australian states can breathe a sigh of relief. After two years in a row of 20% price increases, power prices have finally stabilised. In many places they’re ...
Chumbawamba have reportedly issued the deputy PM a cease-and-desist notice after he used their song 'Tubthumping' before his state of the nation speech. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Deborah Lupton, SHARP Professor, Vitalities Lab, Centre for Social Research in Health and Social Policy Centre, and the ARC Centre of Excellence for Automated Decision-Making and Society, UNSW Sydney kitzcorner/Shutterstock The assertion from Queensland’s chief health officer John Gerrard that ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Peter Martin, Visiting Fellow, Crawford School of Public Policy, Australian National University Shutterstock Why are musicians so keen to get played on the radio? It can’t be because of the money. In Australia they are paid at rates so low they ...
"Farmers make a point not to tell our urban cousins how to live, yet Chlöe from central Auckland is hell-bent on having her say about farmers," says ACT Rural Communities spokesman Mark Cameron. “On her first day in the House as Green ...
Analysis by Dr Bryce Edwards – Democracy Project (https://democracyproject.nz)Political scientist, Dr Bryce Edwards. It’s been a tumultuous time in politics in recent months, as the new National-led Government has driven through its “First 100 Day programme”. During this period there’s been a handful of opinion polls, which overall just ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Tim Curran, Associate Professor of Ecology, Lincoln University, New Zealand Getty Images/Gerald Corsi In the latest move to reform environmental laws in New Zealand, the coalition government has introduced a bill to fast-track consenting processes for projects deemed to ...
Uber has argued it does not have as much control over drivers as the unions suggest, and wants a judgment ruling that drivers are employees and not contractors set aside and sent back to the Employment Court. The 2022 ruling followed a three-week hearing in which four drivers sought to ...
What can and can’t be purchased by disabled people or their carers has been slashed in an effort by the Ministry of Disabled People Whaikaha to save money. The purchasing guidelines, a set of rules that sets out what can be purchased using the various streams of Government disability funding, ...
The Treasury has published today a new Analytical Note by Tod Wright and Hien Nguyen, Fiscal incidence in New Zealand: The effects of taxes and benefits on household incomes in tax year 2018/19 . Analyses of the distributional impact of taxation and government ...
The Treasury has published today a new Analytical Note by Cory Davis, Boston Hart and Benjamin Stubbing, Household cost-of-living impacts from the Emissions Trading Scheme and using transfers to mitigate regressive outcomes . This Analytical Note ...
A coalition of public transport and climate organisations, united as ‘Transport for All’, is actively opposing the government’s transport proposals. The draft Government Policy Statement (GPS) includes plans for higher fares for public transport, ...
Greater Wellington is inviting feedback on proposed changes to its Revenue and Financing Policy. The Revenue and Financing Policy covers the Council’s various sources of funding, and how the cost of services is shared across the region. This includes ...
Labour has conceded it could have done more to deal with disruptive state housing tenants while in government but says the current coalition is going too far. ...
The band has asked their record label to issue a cease and desist to stop the NZ First leader using their 1997 hit to support his ‘misguided political views’. “I get knocked down, but I get up again,” blared through the speakers on Sunday as Winston Peters took the stage ...
By Lydia Lewis, RNZ Pacific journalist Food rationing is underway in remote areas in Papua New Guinea’s Highlands following torrential rain and flash flooding. More than 20 people have been reported dead in Chimbu Province. In nearby Enga Province, the centre of last month’s massacre, a 15-year-old boy has been ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Andrew Hughes, Lecturer, Research School of Management, Australian National University After months of debate and intrigue, the AFL’s 19th and newest team, the Tasmania Devils, finally launched its jumper, logo and colours in Devonport this week. The Devils will wear green, ...
Brannavan Gnanalingam reviews the debut novel by Saraid de Silva.One of the most baffling things for children who move to a new country is what their parents’ (or grandparents’) lives were like prior to moving – for kids in particular, they’re too busy trying to fit in in their ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Stephen Gaunson, Associate Professor in Cinema Studies, RMIT University Narelle Portanier/Binge “If you don’t know who your mob are, you don’t know who you are,” Detective Andrea “Andie” Whitford (played by Leah Purcell) is told early into the new crime ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Elise Klein, Associate professor, Australian National University It’s commonly accepted that women do the vast majority of caregiving in Australian society. But less appreciated is that Indigenous women do larger amounts of unpaid care than any other group. Working with the Aboriginal ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Adrian Beaumont, Election Analyst (Psephologist) at The Conversation; and Honorary Associate, School of Mathematics and Statistics, The University of Melbourne Joe Biden and Donald Trump have both secured their parties’ nominations for the November 5 United States general election by winning a ...
Comment: There has been a striking contrast in trans-Tasman interest about Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi’s visit to New Zealand and Australia. While the Australian press has been full of articles about the visit – including his curious decision to meet with former prime minister and China booster Paul Keating ...
After years of pressuring banks and other institutions to stop investing in fossil fuels, climate campaigners are making some progress. So how does divestment work?For years, climate activists have been pushing banks and other big institutions to divest from fossil fuels. New research from climate advocacy group 350 Aotearoa ...
For Boba, Ethan and Ashley, K-pop is a place to belong, a way to express themselves, and a bridge to connect with others. The three young Polynesians are part of a K-pop fan community in Tāmaki Makaurau. It’s one of many that have sprung up worldwide as K-pop has gone ...
For Boba, Ethan and Ashley, K-pop is a place to belong, a way to express themselves, and a bridge to connect with others. This one-off documentary presents three intimate portraits of young Polynesians who are pulled into a Korean cultural phenomenon. K-POLYS is directed by Litia Tuiburelevu, Produced by Hex ...
There’s ample evidence demonstrating free school lunch programmes provide wide benefits across schools, households and communities according to public health researchers. ACT Minister David Seymour wants to reduce the spending on Aotearoa New Zealand’s ...
By Wata Shaw in Suva Fiji is facing an exodus of Fijians as many are leaving for overseas seeking employment and education and others are migrating, says Opposition MP Viliame Naupoto. Speaking in Parliament, he said: “His Excellency’s speech (Ratu Wiliame Katonivere) comes after a little over one year of ...
The Taxpayers’ Union is welcoming comments from Christopher Luxon this morning recommitting to ‘no new taxes’ as part of Budget 2024. “Mr Luxon’s refusal at the Post-Cabinet press conference yesterday to repeat the ‘no new taxes’ promise ...
SAFE is urgently calling on the Environment Committee to reject the Government’s Fast-Track Approvals Bill, and is urging New Zealanders to rally behind the call. The proposed Bill, currently under consideration with the Environment select committee, ...
Teammates who spend all their time picking fights with spectators are only helpful for the other team, writes Madeleine Chapman. Anyone who has ever played a team sport competitively, particularly as a child and particularly, for some reason, basketball, will know that there’s a lot of politics involved. While there ...
The long-running Wellington music festival is too focused on the Jim Beam-ness and not enough on the Homegrown-ness.There is something about Homegrown that’s difficult to place. A barely perceptible-ness. Like feeling a ghost is watching you from the corner of the room but when you look, there’s nothing there. ...
The latest Ipsos New Zealand Issues Monitor reveals that fewer New Zealanders believe crime / law and order is one of the top issues facing our country. In 2018, Ipsos New Zealand started tracking the key issues facing New Zealand. In this wave ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Kate Griffiths, Deputy Program Director, Budgets and Government, Grattan Institute Australia’s political donations rules are woefully inadequate, but donations reform is finally on the agenda. The federal government has signalled its interest in reform and will soon begin briefing MPs on its ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Mark Patrick Taylor, Chief Environmental Scientist, EPA Victoria; Honorary Professor, School of Natural Sciences, Macquarie University Naiyana Somchitkaeo/Shutterstock A recent study published in the prestigious New England Journal of Medicine has linked microplastics with risk to human health. The study ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Albert Van Dijk, Professor, Water and Landscape Dynamics, Fenner School of Environment & Society, Australian National University Global climate records were shattered in 2023, from air and sea temperatures to sea-level rise and sea-ice extent. Scores of countries recorded their hottest year ...
As part of our series exploring how New Zealanders live and our relationship with money, a teacher explains why he and his partner are in frugal mode – and how they’re making it work. Gender: Male Age: 35Ethnicity: Pākehā Role: I am an intermediate school teacher and my partner is ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Sarah Bendall, Senior Lecturer, Institute for Humanities and Social Sciences, Australian Catholic University Binge Mary & George, the new British television drama series, depicts the real-life story of Mary Villiers and her son George, and their social climbing at the ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jason Nassios, Associate Professor, Centre of Policy Studies, Victoria University This article is part of The Conversation’s series examining the housing crisis. Read the other articles in the series here. Australian state and federal governments spend money in many ways to ...
The finance minister is denying that there’s a $5.6b shortfall in paying for the government’s campaign promises, including tax cuts. At his post-cabinet press conference yesterday, the PM refused to rule out new taxes to pay for the cuts, writes Anna Rawhiti-Connell in this excerpt from The Bulletin, The Spinoff’s ...
Kāinga Ora tenants abused by their neighbours are doubting the government's crackdown on disruptive tenants will make a difference on their behaviour. ...
Kāinga Ora is New Zealand’s biggest residential landlord, housing more than 180,000 vulnerable people in more than 67,000 properties. Yesterday the government announced a crackdown on its tenants who fall behind on rent. One longtime Kāinga Ora tenant shares her experience.For 18 years I lived in a 1960s standalone ...
Why does this myth persist, and what’s the real reason our skin is suffering?It’s one of the biggest international grievances New Zealanders hold, up there with the sinking of the Rainbow Warrior and 1981’s underarm incident. We’re quick to tell international travellers that the world’s pollution led to the ...
Opinion: In a move that has shocked road safety advocates across the country, the new Minister of Transport, Simeon Brown, is poised to abandon the previous government’s speed limit reduction policy, particularly around schools. Even more alarmingly, he wants school speed limits to be variable rather than full-time, arguing ...
Auckland Council is opposing a fast-track development backed by Sir John Kirwan and Spark NZ, because it doesn’t meet stringent new climate adaptation requirements The post Surf-data centre faces new 3.8C climate warming rules appeared first on Newsroom. ...
When the Criminal Proceeds (Recovery) Act was introduced in 2009 it was firmly targeted at gangs and drugs. The legislation means police no longer need a conviction to seize assets that criminals can’t prove were paid for legitimately, as long as their alleged offences are punishable by more than a ...
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It's the National party, as duplicitous as ever:
Tax policy launched loudly … and then dumped quietly
Andrea Vance's new book will need a new chapter. Willis and Luxon can't keep a story straight, from one interview to the next. Who's running this shambles?
And if anyone needs reminding …
Here's my commitment to you. When I become Prime Minister, I'll reverse Labour's tax grab, National will repeal each of these tax increases implemented by Labour.
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/political/462810/christopher-luxon-s-state-of-the-nation-speech-government-needs-to-stop-its-tax-grab
Very simple B&W messaging, details are not important (aka noise). What people hear is: Labour = more tax, less money and National = less tax, more money.
That's not what people hear today. The Herald link above was clear, but here's another:
National has quietly ditched its proposal to cut taxes in order to tackle the cost of living crisis.
https://thespinoff.co.nz/live-updates/04-08-2022/national-quietly-parks-proposed-tax-policy
What they're hearing is not "B & W messaging", but the opposite.
What is the opposite of "B & W messaging"?
Lol is it "W + B" ?
The question reminds me of the answer given by the then President of the Collingwood Football Club in the AFL when the League demanded that every team had to have two jerseys (or guernseys in the local vernacular). One would be for home games and one for away matches. This did not go down very well with the Magpies who had been wearing their black and white vertically striped jersey since 1884.
The then President announced that they would go along with the rule by wearing black and white stripes for home games and white and black stripes for the away ones.
There was a later minor compromise made but unless you were a Collingwood follower you probably wouldn't have seen the difference in the two types.
My Australian cousin's a 'Pie'. I reckon he could tell the difference.
Older brother was a massive Collingwood fan (eclipsed only by his loyalty to Liverpool FC (UK football) & St George Dragons (NRL)).
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/political/472216/labour-and-national-go-tit-for-tat-over-tax
I hear a B&W message, consistently.
Agree, and Labour have regularly made the same distinction but in terms of more services and support for those on lower incomes i.e. what the taxation pays for.
What a moment it must have been, when James Lovelock realised this:
"Earth, in contrast, was a living system that worked to maintain the atmosphere in violent disequilibrium with the planet’s geology. This, Lovelock realised, was the signature of life that could be highly useful as we searched for other living planets.", having first discovered this:
"Lovelock was at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, when the first analyses of the Martian and Venusian atmospheres were received. He realised immediately that they were very different from Earth’s atmosphere, in that they were at equilibrium with the planet’s geology. Venus and Mars, he concluded, were dead planets."
https://theconversation.com/inspiration-mentor-and-a-truly-great-man-tim-flannery-farewells-scientist-james-lovelock-who-has-returned-to-gaia-at-103-187846
Tim Flannery rated him!
“James Lovelock was an inspiration and a mentor, a truly great man the likes of whom we shall not see again. Today, science is compartmentalised, collaborative, regulated and peer-reviewed in ways that do not sit well with the maverick. And yet there is a crying need for such people, especially those able to take the holistic view, as risky and uncertain as that sometimes is.”
Lovelock is a great thinker and presented a great environmental argument for nuclear.
He opined that our concern with nuclear is the waste. Contrast that with gas/coal emissions that we ignore but will kill you immediately.
He reckoned he would happily store the waste (appropriately contained) from his lifetime use of nuclear energy on his veranda.
hard to see how given the longevity of the waste. What happens to it if civilisation fails and it can't be looked after?
There's also the issue of plant failure like Fukushima. You'd be a brave politician or MP to consider nuclear generation in the Shakey Isles.
It's not a choice between nuclear and coal/gas. It's a choice between nuclear and sustainable/resilient.
TBF I have no argument with you about a pivot to severely less energy dense life (sustainable).
I think I heard this 20 or years ago. The idea reminds me of the hydro dam/environment tension from back in the day. Nature took a back seat so we could keep biggering. Ironically, now we claim our renewable energy supply to be green.
I'm aware of that irony too, and think about it fair deal. We are fortunate that Aramoana smelter and other projects that were going to be powered by the Clyde dam didn't go ahead. But the idea that we can keep flooding rivers has run it's course thankfully. Which brings us neatly to the limits of nature. At some point we might realise that working with nature enables us to meet our needs and create sustainable human communities. Hopefully soon.
Mystical spirit thinking ends up in techno-nightmare.
"….he [Lovelock] would happily store the waste (appropriately contained) from his lifetime use of nuclear energy on his veranda." gsays
Then what?
Rather than take the advice of a whacky pseudo greeny mysticist to go nuclear we would be better served to follow the science.
In the first link ( which I had the good fortune to hear on Radio ! ) Cawthron Institute lead scientist for this project, Dana Clark talks to Jesse.
Lotsa money in gay frogs, penis pills and Hillary's plan to chemically castrate Trump voters with chemtrails.
https://twitter.com/oneunderscore__/status/1554864067508060160
The phone documents also appeared to reveal Infowars’ long-hidden finances.
Bankston outlined several days in 2018 in which Infowars made over $800,000 per day. Jones did not dispute the veracity of the emails or the dollar figures, but claimed some of their higher-profit days came during the week of CPAC, the conservative conference.
https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/alex-jones-lawyers-accidentally-leak-years-emails-infowars-financial-d-rcna41378
The video. Would love to have seen his lawyer’s face.
https://twitter.com/briantylercohen/status/1554882192961982465
Jones' lawyer is either incompetent, or he really doesn't like his client.
https://twitter.com/SebastianMurdoc/status/1554863674271191041
And then there's this.
https://twitter.com/oneunderscore__/status/1554874905526734848
The January 6th House committee is preparing to request the trove of Alex Jones’s text messages and emails revealed Wednesday in a defamation lawsuit filed by victims of the Sandy Hook massacre, Rolling Stone has learned.
On Wednesday, Sandy Hook victims’ attorney Mark Bankston told Jones that his attorney had mistakenly sent Bankston three years worth of the conspiracy theorist’s emails and text messages copied from his phone.
Now — a source familiar with the matter and another person briefed on it tell Rolling Stone — the January 6th committee is preparing to request that data from the plaintiff attorneys in order to aid its investigation of the insurrection. These internal deliberations among the committee, which is probing former President Donald Trump’s role in causing the deadly Jan. 6 Capitol riot, began within minutes of the lawyer’s revelation being heard on the trial’s livestream on Wednesday afternoon.
https://archive.ph/dEM7U (rollingstone)
Not that I think that Jones is a nice person – but he really does have a case against his lawyer for malpractice.
Alex Jones is an American conservative, alt-right, and far-right radio show host and prominent conspiracy theorist.
"In the years following the [Sandy Hook] incident, Mr Jones repeatedly claimed that the shooting was a ploy to push gun control measures and claimed without evidence that it had been staged by actors and the media."
No sympathy here…he deserves a crap lawyer.
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-62415376
other people don't though if this is negligence.
Agreed…I doubt if his lawyer will have people queueing up after this.
Jones used the same tactics to deny evidence of massacres committed by Assad regime revealed by the White Helmets.
The same claims of fraud of staged rescues of using crisis actors to fake injuries the whole gamut of the fascist big lie tactic.
Good on the parents of the children killed at Sandy Hook for taking this modern Goebbels to court.
Unfortunately, there is as yet no legal mechanism where the victims of Assad genocide and war crimes can file charges in court against Alex Jones and the all the other liars and genocide enablers and war crime deniers to court.
However; To all you deniers and enablers of war crimes and genocide in Syria and Ukraine, take it from me, Alex Jones trial and conviction, is a fair warning to all of you, that a day of reckoning for you, and justice for all the victims of your lies will come eventually.
For the Crime of killing the truth;
https://thesyriacampaign.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/KillingtheTruth.pdf
For the crime of preying on the gullible and spreading your fascist infection in Left forums;
It gets better.
https://twitter.com/RealKellyJones/status/1554883582837096454
https://theconversation.com/amp/mental-health-wins-record-funding-in-new-zealands-first-well-being-budget-118047
thank you to the NZ govt after a 3 year wait we have been informed that 1 member has been taken off the waiting list and we will have to find other options. Well if you are taken of a list what other options are there ??
So children are going undiagnosed, then as a consequence miss out on support like reader/writers, extra time, use of computers and other medical and education assistance there is. Thank you Do Litlle so you allocated some money appeared on your platform BUT this govt has totally FAILED again. Go back to your union job (the one that you are suppose to support workers- those workers who you are currently screwing) you are just someone taking space no better than a cardboard cutout in this government and destroying the future of Kiwis. This govt is SO OUT of touch with reality- and I add so are many who feature here🤬
Our son has had a similar thing occur in QLD Australia. His cousin has had a lung operation delayed x4 and the date moved out and told a private NSW hospital, when there is room. More the pandemic than incompetence imo. It is easy to blame the minister, harder to deal with covid impacts.
Blame the minister this commitment was made well before anyone new the existence of COVID. So now we have to just throw a cohort of those currently at school into the rubbish bin ?? That covers new entrance to yr 13.
when depts bid for money during the budget process must they and the ministers/govt also have some understanding that what is being asked for can be delivered. To me like the COVID 75k testing capabilities no one asked the obvious. So in that case yes it IS the minister/a at fault. They MUST be able to deliver, and with this govt once the announcement has been made there appears no care to fulfil.
So as of yesterday Ngai Tahu can now appoint 2 to Environment Canterbury.
Anyone notice the race war break out yet?
This is just a continuation of existing policy, is it not?
National is calling it 'undemocratic' – though haven't seen a commitment to roll it back, when they are next in government (TBH – I haven't gone looking….).
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/political/472178/new-law-gives-ngai-tahu-right-to-appoint-two-environment-canterbury-councillors
Well according to Paul Goldsmith
"He said it would create a precedent, and promised National would repeal the law if it won the next election."
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/129454384/historic-moment-as-parliament-votes-to-allow-ngi-tahu-to-choose-environment-canterbury-appointees
One does wonder how, given the enormous scope of Ngai Tahu investments in the Canterbury area, the representatives can possibly vote on anything if they observe the conflict of interest rules properly.
By the way. Did you even read the story you linked to? This statement was also quoted in the last line of that link.
Do you happen to know the extent of this investment and how it compares with other institutional investments across Canterbury?
Others have run this line specifically regarding dairy farming; they were incorrect, Chinese investment in Canterbury dairy farms dwarfs that of tangata whenua.
Guess I missed the quote. I'd seen the 'opposed' bit, but my eye must have skipped across the promise to repeal.
Paora Goldsmith got skewered at QT about this a couple of days ago (HT Robert Guyton). For example:
https://www.parliament.nz/en/pb/hansard-debates/rhr/document/HansS_20220802_051360000/11-question-no-11-justice
But there are many references in that transcript to the previous National Government and how they set this up in the first place.
No Bloody amazing!! All quiet lol.
I'm not sure anyone predicted a 'race war', did they? Appointing people purely on the basis of an accident of birth would seem to a silly policy, rather than anything more sinister.
You've missed the Chris Trotter and Martyn Bradbury columns then.
I must have.
Anyone going to the "FARC off Brian" counter protests this weekend?
https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/new-zealand/2022/08/brain-tamaki-s-freedoms-and-rights-coalition-auckland-protest-will-be-met-with-farc-off-brian-counter-protest.html
Nope putting up election hoardings as usual.
“Beware that, when fighting monsters, you yourself do not become a monster."
Nietzsche
https://chng.it/q2Dzz2fF5d
President Zelensky needs to heed the warning given by Nietzsche
“Beware that, when fighting monsters, you yourself do not become a monster."
Nietzsche
I honestly thought you were replying to Muttonbird @ 7.
Fits.
.
Certainly a message that dogmatic Woke Cultists urgently need to hear (but, of course, their inherent narcissism, self-righteous delusions of grandeur & love of indiscriminately wielding power over others renders them deaf to all critique)..
Critical Theory's crude, distorted, low-resolution view of the world guaranteed to engender massive new forms of social in-justice (& to further entrench already existing ones).
Yes.
Luxon withdraws commitment to increase in health spending to match inflation.
Willis says no decision has been made on whether this will be done.
So did Luxon speak without knowledge of the processes for making these decisions?
Has anyone noted that with an aging population and the cost of pandemic management (medical impact of deferred treatments) would mean merely matching inflation costs would result in a decline in our health system (and a complete inability to deal with staff shortages and a growing waiting list).
As for National's missing in action, but still loud in the media, they are no better.
Paula for my benefit Training Incentive Allowance by not for women after me Bennett – she says she would have given no one the cost of living increase but noted those on benefits had lower income than those getting the money.
She also would not have given the real increase of benefit levels made 1 April 2022 or the power income supplement either …
https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/politics/2022/08/unions-lash-out-at-christopher-luxon-after-he-backtracks-on-health-funding-promise.html
And it's pissed Russian squadies by a length
/
UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The U.N. nuclear chief warned that Europe’s largest nuclear power plant in Ukraine “is completely out of control” and issued an urgent plea to Russia and Ukraine to quickly allow experts to visit the sprawling complex to stabilize the situation and avoid a nuclear accident.
Rafael Grossi, director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency, said in an interview Tuesday with The Associated Press that the situation is getting more perilous every day at the Zaporizhzhia plant in the southeastern city of Enerhodar, which Russian troops seized in early March, soon after their Feb. 24. invasion of Ukraine.
“Every principle of nuclear safety has been violated” at the plant, he said. “What is at stake is extremely serious and extremely grave and dangerous.”
https://apnews.com/article/russia-ukraine-science-accidents-d2e0077af104f2692b76f737c58e1984
Useful idiots are found on every rung of the political ladder.
Jeremy 'Peace in our time' Corbyn
(Appeaser is such an ugly word)
“I’d be very surprised if Corbyn has actually spoken to Ukrainians or even knows any…."
Oleksandra Povoroznyk
Putin's Poodle
Jeremy Corbyn in his statement on Ukraine, repeatedly refers to Ukraine as, "the Ukraine" as if Ukraine was a region, not a country.
(As in, 'in the Waikato'. As opposed to 'in New Zealand'. For instance if someone told you a man was found, 'in the Waikato', instead of, 'in Waikato', you could be excused for thinking that they were found in the river, (not the region.)
Whether he did it consciously, or unconsciously, Ukrainians found Corbyn's referring to their country as a region offensive and insulting.
Kathryn Graber explains why.
My clarifications in Parenthese […] J.
Jeremy Corbyn in his statement on Ukraine, repeatedly refers to Ukraine as, "the Ukraine" as if Ukraine was a region, not a country.
Oh, what a hideous crime! He should tried as a war criminal when the war is over, (if that day ever comes).
David Parker takes down Willis in QT today. Classy.
https://ondemand.parliament.nz/parliament-tv-on-demand/?itemId=227116
I also liked Hipkin's quick quip about bowing to Bishop's superior knowledge of scams!
Though it gave the speaker a bit of trouble sorting it all out.
I love the way he acts out the role of the village idiot when he is widely believed to be the brightest bulb in parliament.
Your prejudice is so obvious that it’s blinding
[TheStandard: A moderator moved this comment to Open Mike as being off topic or irrelevant in the post it was made in. Be more careful in future.]
I’ve explained that the policy requires you to supply evidence for claims. If you don’t want to work within the kaupapa of the site, I will just ban you. Your choice.